I have, and am mid-way through, this Levon biography, and loving it. I'll get the Chris Hillman book, thank you. I saw the Birds at Town Hall a few years back, they recreated Sweethearts... (Marty Stuart opened, such a great show), and came away with a new and huge appreciation for Hillman. Such a talent.
Two new books on great musicians.
1- Levon Helm: From Down In The Delta To The Birth Of The Band And Beyond, by Sandra Tooze. Levon's autobiography was good, but didn't read like he spoke (it was co-written with Stephen Davis). As I have already recounted here, Ringo Starr showed up at Levon's 1993 book release signing event at Book Soup on Sunset Blvd. to have his copy signed. He took cuts in line ;-) .
2- Time Between: My Life As A Byrd, Burrito Brother, And Beyond, by Chris Hillman. Though Roger McGuinn is given credit for The Byrds, and Gram Parsons for The Flying Burrito Brothers, Chris was very instrumental (damn puns ;-) in both groups. McGuinn (along with fellow Byrds David Crosby and Gene Clark) and Parsons came to Rock 'n' Roll from Folk, not Country, music backgrounds. Chris came from Bluegrass, and returned to it (his solo albums on Sugar Hill are fantastic).
Funny how both book titles end with the same expression.
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Damn @rpeluso, you’ve seen Marty Stuart live! Was it solo, or did he have his band The Fabulous Superlatives? They are in my opinion the best band in the world at this moment in time. I met Marty at The Palomino in the 90’s, but it was just an industry meet & greet, no performance. I saw a lot of great shows at The Palomino, including The Pretenders on their first tour (I played on the club’s stage once, accompanying a young singer/songwriter who now lives in Texas). Nudies western clothes store was right down the street from the club in N. Hollywood. Nudie made the suits Gram Parsons, Chris Hillman, and the other Flying Burrito Brothers are wearing on the front cover of their debut album. Parsons’ jacket is adorned with marijuana leaves. If he had stuck with weed he’d still be with us. |
@rpeluso, Marty hasn't played the Northwest in the time I've been here. He used to have a great TV show, a couple of them actually. When he did the Letterman Show, at the end of the song Dave literally lept out of his chair in excitement. Damn good band. I first time I heard his guitarist Kenny Vaughan he was playing in Lucinda Williams band. Harry Stinson is not only a fantastic drummer (for years a 1st-call Nashville studio player), but is a session harmony singer as well. His bass player Chris Scaggs is also a 1st-call Nashville steel guitar player. As I said above, I consider them the best working band in the world. And then there's Marty! Their 2017 album was produced by Heartbreaker Mike Campbell. @slaw, it's available on LP. -) |
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Very interesting and informative books. I also like the biography of one of the jazz musicians. |